Stereo Setup?

Squidward
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Squidward 10/13/2017 4:47pm
10/13/2017 4:47pm Edited Date/Time 10/16/2017 10:34am
So I listen to music all the time, but don't have a system worth a crap. I was looking around for something super loud and crisp to slap in my room, but i'm not too sure what to get. The ONLY thing I ever listen to is metal/hardcore. So far i'm leaning towards my old man's setup. Adcom GFA 555 amp, denon player and reciver, and some klipsch Forte 2's. Just wondering if there's any sound guys on here who have ideas. Or any advice from anyone with a good setup. Thanks everyone, appreciate any feedback.
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Falcon
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Falcon 10/13/2017 5:26pm
10/13/2017 5:26pm
I'm not familiar with all those choices, but I feel like you are going the right direction with Klipsch. I have some Polk Audio home speakers which are nice, but they aren't as nice as the Klipsch ones my in-laws had.

By the way, speakers are the biggest variable in sound systems, for my money. Almost any CD/DVD player will produce good signal, and most home stereo component amps have THD values way below what you can hear. The bulk of your distortion will come from poor speaker choices. If you're choosing between a better amp or better speakers, always go for the better speakers.
Squidward
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Squidward 10/13/2017 5:29pm
10/13/2017 5:29pm
Falcon wrote:
I'm not familiar with all those choices, but I feel like you are going the right direction with Klipsch. I have some Polk Audio home speakers...
I'm not familiar with all those choices, but I feel like you are going the right direction with Klipsch. I have some Polk Audio home speakers which are nice, but they aren't as nice as the Klipsch ones my in-laws had.

By the way, speakers are the biggest variable in sound systems, for my money. Almost any CD/DVD player will produce good signal, and most home stereo component amps have THD values way below what you can hear. The bulk of your distortion will come from poor speaker choices. If you're choosing between a better amp or better speakers, always go for the better speakers.
Really? I always heard the amp is 80% of your sound quality. But I agree good speakers are on the top of the priority list.
JAFO92
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JAFO92 10/13/2017 6:10pm
10/13/2017 6:10pm
I have a few items 'round the house....... Cool







-MAVERICK-
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-MAVERICK- 10/13/2017 6:13pm
10/13/2017 6:13pm
Where's Steed? I'm assuming this would be right up his alley.

The Shop

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Squidward
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Squidward 10/13/2017 6:55pm
10/13/2017 6:55pm
JAFO92 wrote:
I have a few items 'round the house....... B) [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2017/10/13/220028/s1200_Pioneer_System_2.jpg[/img] [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2017/10/13/220031/s1200_System_1.jpg[/img] [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2017/10/13/220032/s1200_System_3.jpg[/img]
I have a few items 'round the house....... Cool







Holy freaking crap I'm the most jealous person on earth right now. Bet ya that cost a pretty penny, didn't it?
Squidward
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Squidward 10/13/2017 6:58pm
10/13/2017 6:58pm
You read my mind. I don't want some fancy surround sound movie theater crap, I want raw sheer bitchin sound. My dad's setup is from the mid to late 90's and will blow out your ear drums at half volume with crisp sound still. He told me when he first got it, he would blare sound garden from the garage and have the neighbor a thousand feet away continuously call the cops on him Laughing
borg
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borg 10/13/2017 7:03pm
10/13/2017 7:03pm
I have some 90's vintage Marantz floor speakers. 10" woof, 4" and 3" mid and high. I like loud and these fit my style of music. I'm not an expert but I tend to go with Falcon as far as where to put your money. I don't even use my tv speakers either. My hearing is shit because of my days standing in front of a Marshall stack and these speakers really make a difference when I'm watching a movie. I can actually understand what they are saying in British movies. Apparently, they're not quite good enough for Scottish movies though.
Squidward
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Squidward 10/13/2017 7:12pm
10/13/2017 7:12pm
borg wrote:
I have some 90's vintage Marantz floor speakers. 10" woof, 4" and 3" mid and high. I like loud and these fit my style of music...
I have some 90's vintage Marantz floor speakers. 10" woof, 4" and 3" mid and high. I like loud and these fit my style of music. I'm not an expert but I tend to go with Falcon as far as where to put your money. I don't even use my tv speakers either. My hearing is shit because of my days standing in front of a Marshall stack and these speakers really make a difference when I'm watching a movie. I can actually understand what they are saying in British movies. Apparently, they're not quite good enough for Scottish movies though.
It seems like the 90's held some great stuff for sound equipment. I would love to get a good set of Marantz floor speakers if I find me cheap enough. The way everything looking, I'll spend around 1300 bucks. New all this stuff was over 5k so I'm plenty happy with that....
Squitlege
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Squitlege 10/13/2017 8:17pm
10/13/2017 8:17pm
JAFO.....



Squidward
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Squidward 10/13/2017 8:23pm
10/13/2017 8:23pm
Jesus man. I can only dream, I'd love to find some good vintage stuff too, old tube amps and whatnot. I never knew pioneer made that type of stuff from however long ago. Only thing pioneer I've seen is the radio in my dad's truck. That's another amazing setup, but all modern. (don't think you can really get old stuff in your car unless you go straight punk and tape some bookshelves to your dash...) Thanks for sharing you'r setup though, by far and away the coolest ive seen in a long time.Smile
JAFO92
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JAFO92 10/13/2017 8:24pm
10/13/2017 8:24pm
Squidward wrote:
Holy freaking crap I'm the most jealous person on earth right now. Bet ya that cost a pretty penny, didn't it?
That is 100% 70s vintage, discrete Pioneer gear. No IC chips, No plastic, no unobtanium . All rebuildable analog, all walnut, aluminum and glass. Been collecting for many years. My collection is all mint, top of the line for their era.

Light years better than the disposable black plastic crap made in the 80/90s

https://youtu.be/M_LJGVp7N1U
Hut
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Hut 10/13/2017 8:24pm
10/13/2017 8:24pm
Squidward
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Squidward 10/13/2017 8:28pm
10/13/2017 8:28pm
JAFO92 wrote:
That is 100% 70s vintage, discrete Pioneer gear. No IC chips, No plastic, no unobtanium . All rebuildable analog, all walnut, aluminum and glass. Been collecting...
That is 100% 70s vintage, discrete Pioneer gear. No IC chips, No plastic, no unobtanium . All rebuildable analog, all walnut, aluminum and glass. Been collecting for many years. My collection is all mint, top of the line for their era.

Light years better than the disposable black plastic crap made in the 80/90s

https://youtu.be/M_LJGVp7N1U
Oh man. you're gonna make me cry Laughing
JAFO92
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JAFO92 10/13/2017 8:40pm
10/13/2017 8:40pm
Squidward wrote:
Oh man. you're gonna make me cry :laugh:
Oh man. you're gonna make me cry Laughing
Cant beat the sounds of ATR +10db studio tape running at 15ips. You can record very very hot and still not saturate the media.

https://youtu.be/LP3DJeOK9LE
Squidward
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Squidward 10/13/2017 8:58pm
10/13/2017 8:58pm
^^^ I think im gonna have to re-think my stereo system options. This old Alpine stuff is just bad to the bone. May have to save up quite a bit more and search longer, but that sure looks frickin worth it.
JAFO92
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JAFO92 10/13/2017 9:08pm
10/13/2017 9:08pm
The 1980 was indeed the biggest they made, but by the time that one came out there were shortcuts being made (the beancounters were pressuring the engineers to get costs down) and there is unobtainium in there that is hard to get if it lets go. While 'good sound' is relative to the listener, Im still from the camp that the SX-1250 was the best they ever made. I would never sell my 1250 !

Youre right Big Bertha still commands serious coin these days.
Squidward
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Squidward 10/13/2017 9:13pm
10/13/2017 9:13pm
Yup. Looks like im gonna have to stick with my 20 dollar tin can sounding speakers for a while, one day though, one day. This alpine stuff is so incredibly cool, Im glad I got to see all this before I just blew my money away on some old 40 dollar denon players and recivers haha.

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blusmbl
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blusmbl 10/14/2017 7:26am
10/14/2017 7:26am Edited Date/Time 10/14/2017 7:30am
I put together a vintage system about 12 years ago before the prices really took off. Have a Marantz 2270 receiver, a 8260 SACD player (would not recommend...sounds great but has laser issues), an older Pioneer turntable that I upgraded with a Shure Mx97E cartridge, and a set of Pioneer HPM-100's (which JAFO92 has like 6 pairs of!!!). Also built a Bottlehead crack headphone tube amp, mostly out of boredom.

The 70's Marantz receivers hold their value and are workhorses. Also look for used Sony ES gear, made in the late 90's and early 2000's. They were much better than the normal disposable garbage in the 80's. Check Craigslist, estate sales, thrift stores, ebay, etc. If you want modern, a friend of mine has been happy with his recent Yamaha purchases. They make some excellent receivers.

Speakers will have the largest influence on the sound. A good receiver is only a small piece of the puzzle. Newer gear has the ability to compensate for the speaker qualities though, there are many digital signal processors available that can make up for shortcomings in speakers, well beyond what you can do with the normal set of tone controls on an analog receiver.
kzizok
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kzizok 10/14/2017 8:18am
10/14/2017 8:18am Edited Date/Time 10/14/2017 8:19am
Squidward wrote:
So I listen to music all the time, but don't have a system worth a crap. I was looking around for something super loud and crisp...
So I listen to music all the time, but don't have a system worth a crap. I was looking around for something super loud and crisp to slap in my room, but i'm not too sure what to get. The ONLY thing I ever listen to is metal/hardcore. So far i'm leaning towards my old man's setup. Adcom GFA 555 amp, denon player and reciver, and some klipsch Forte 2's. Just wondering if there's any sound guys on here who have ideas. Or any advice from anyone with a good setup. Thanks everyone, appreciate any feedback.
Coincidently, I have Adcom and Denon too. The amp and reciever are Adcom and have a Denon CD player (dont use it though). I use Phase Tech speakers.

The Adcom stuff is high end but Ive had mine for 25 years. Its good stuff.
Foghorn
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Foghorn 10/14/2017 8:20am
10/14/2017 8:20am
I'm running a Pioneer SC79 with Totem Tribe 3 wall speakers and Totem, 9", in ceiling speakers. Can't say I'm particularly knowledgeable on sound systems but this one is pretty damn sweet. I bought it after some research and dealing with a local company that sells and installs whole home systems. Pretty pricey, but worth it to me.
Squidward
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Squidward 10/14/2017 9:26am
10/14/2017 9:26am
blusmbl wrote:
I put together a vintage system about 12 years ago before the prices really took off. Have a Marantz 2270 receiver, a 8260 SACD player (would...
I put together a vintage system about 12 years ago before the prices really took off. Have a Marantz 2270 receiver, a 8260 SACD player (would not recommend...sounds great but has laser issues), an older Pioneer turntable that I upgraded with a Shure Mx97E cartridge, and a set of Pioneer HPM-100's (which JAFO92 has like 6 pairs of!!!). Also built a Bottlehead crack headphone tube amp, mostly out of boredom.

The 70's Marantz receivers hold their value and are workhorses. Also look for used Sony ES gear, made in the late 90's and early 2000's. They were much better than the normal disposable garbage in the 80's. Check Craigslist, estate sales, thrift stores, ebay, etc. If you want modern, a friend of mine has been happy with his recent Yamaha purchases. They make some excellent receivers.

Speakers will have the largest influence on the sound. A good receiver is only a small piece of the puzzle. Newer gear has the ability to compensate for the speaker qualities though, there are many digital signal processors available that can make up for shortcomings in speakers, well beyond what you can do with the normal set of tone controls on an analog receiver.
Looks like the Marantz and Pioneer are killing it in the sound equipment industry. First thing im gonna try to score is a good set of floor speakers. Still leaning towards the Klipsch Forte 2's, I always thought it was your amp that gave you the best sound, but it looks like I was wrong on that. I'm not gonna be the most concerned with a cheaper player, and receiver, as long as its not total crap. But im gonna search around for some Marantz and Pioneer stuff too to see whats cooking. I have no problem with old stuff, I would most likely actually prefer it..... All i'm concerned about is the sound quality, and not having to take out a loan to get some good stuff.
Squidward
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Squidward 10/14/2017 9:28am
10/14/2017 9:28am
kzizok wrote:
Coincidently, I have Adcom and Denon too. The amp and reciever are Adcom and have a Denon CD player (dont use it though). I use Phase...
Coincidently, I have Adcom and Denon too. The amp and reciever are Adcom and have a Denon CD player (dont use it though). I use Phase Tech speakers.

The Adcom stuff is high end but Ive had mine for 25 years. Its good stuff.
Haha, thats awesome man. How are the Phase Tech speakers? I haven't really heard anything about those guys.
Squidward
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Squidward 10/14/2017 9:38am
10/14/2017 9:38am
Foghorn wrote:
I'm running a Pioneer SC79 with Totem Tribe 3 wall speakers and Totem, 9", in ceiling speakers. Can't say I'm particularly knowledgeable on sound systems but...
I'm running a Pioneer SC79 with Totem Tribe 3 wall speakers and Totem, 9", in ceiling speakers. Can't say I'm particularly knowledgeable on sound systems but this one is pretty damn sweet. I bought it after some research and dealing with a local company that sells and installs whole home systems. Pretty pricey, but worth it to me.
Holy crap you aint kidding. The SC79 is listed for 1,800 bucks on amazon new, (I see it's discontinued) Looked like 1500 bucks a pop for them wall speakers, and like 900 for the ceiling speakers. I'm sure your prices were different, buying it at once, hopefully you got a discount or something haha. I'm not capable of spending that much, but I bet that's one killer sounding system...
Foghorn
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Foghorn 10/14/2017 10:17am
10/14/2017 10:17am
Foghorn wrote:
I'm running a Pioneer SC79 with Totem Tribe 3 wall speakers and Totem, 9", in ceiling speakers. Can't say I'm particularly knowledgeable on sound systems but...
I'm running a Pioneer SC79 with Totem Tribe 3 wall speakers and Totem, 9", in ceiling speakers. Can't say I'm particularly knowledgeable on sound systems but this one is pretty damn sweet. I bought it after some research and dealing with a local company that sells and installs whole home systems. Pretty pricey, but worth it to me.
Squidward wrote:
Holy crap you aint kidding. The SC79 is listed for 1,800 bucks on amazon new, (I see it's discontinued) Looked like 1500 bucks a pop for...
Holy crap you aint kidding. The SC79 is listed for 1,800 bucks on amazon new, (I see it's discontinued) Looked like 1500 bucks a pop for them wall speakers, and like 900 for the ceiling speakers. I'm sure your prices were different, buying it at once, hopefully you got a discount or something haha. I'm not capable of spending that much, but I bet that's one killer sounding system...
Yeah, the SC80 has replaced the SC79. It was 3k Canadian$ when I bought it. I started with a much lower budget and as that went out the window, I ended up spending 20k. But it sounds great ha!
Hut
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Hut 10/14/2017 10:45am
10/14/2017 10:45am
whoops
Squitlege
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Squitlege 10/14/2017 10:47am
10/14/2017 10:47am Edited Date/Time 10/14/2017 10:51am
Im not even old enough to have been around in this era of pioneer amazingness, but I have multiples of the entire pioneer SX lineup, all serviced and ready to go if anyone is interested. Stuff is pure investment grade, sounds better than anything made in the last 20 years. Pumped on this thread... thought I was the only one in to this stuff.
Squidward
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Squidward 10/14/2017 11:00am
10/14/2017 11:00am
Squitlege wrote:
Im not even old enough to have been around in this era of pioneer amazingness, but I have multiples of the entire pioneer SX lineup, all...
Im not even old enough to have been around in this era of pioneer amazingness, but I have multiples of the entire pioneer SX lineup, all serviced and ready to go if anyone is interested. Stuff is pure investment grade, sounds better than anything made in the last 20 years. Pumped on this thread... thought I was the only one in to this stuff.
Haha, it has been a great turnout so far. I'm definitely looking at the older pioneer stuff, would love to get a good reciver or amp especially, the real question is if I can afford it though....
Squidward
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Squidward 10/14/2017 11:02am
10/14/2017 11:02am
Foghorn wrote:
Yeah, the SC80 has replaced the SC79. It was 3k Canadian$ when I bought it. I started with a much lower budget and as that went...
Yeah, the SC80 has replaced the SC79. It was 3k Canadian$ when I bought it. I started with a much lower budget and as that went out the window, I ended up spending 20k. But it sounds great ha!
Jesus man. You must really love your music. I mean, I thought I really did, but 20k?!
Ebs
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Ebs 10/14/2017 11:17am
10/14/2017 11:17am
Lots of good new speaker options out there for not a lot of money. Setup properly, I bet your casual music listener can't tell the difference between a $200 speaker and a $1000 speaker, it's that close now a days.

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